Jowl At The Full Moon – Javelina Night Run 2012

Jamil CouryRace Report

What began as an informal full moon night training run for the Javelina Jundred, has evolved into an event all its own.  I ran the Javelina Night Run back in 2005 when it was a completely self supported affair, loosely organized by Javelina Jundred founder and race director Geri Kilgariff.  It was my first true night trail run and I remember the magic and adventure of running around the Pemberton Trail under the full moon with friends. Coyotes were howling, I could shut off my headlamp halfway through the run and there was even a night mountain bike ride going on in the opposite direction we were running.  That was back before I ran my first ultra, …

2011 McDowell Mountain Frenzy Preview

Jamil CouryRace Preview

The 3rd edition of the McDowell Mountain Frenzy comes to McDowell Mountain Regional Park this weekend, taking place mainly on the “competitive track” mountain bike courses first built in 1998.  The competitive tracks feature rolling hills, narrow single track, banked turns, and several named “features” including “T-Bone Ridge” (the final climb in the 25 Km & 50 Km courses), “The Chunnel” (a horse tunnel/bridge featured in all races), “Double Dip” (two steep descents at the start of the race), and “Cactus Corner” (aid station on the far southwest corner of the 10 mile course). The 5 Km race is the shortest in the DRT series and follows the Sport Loop, featuring a single loop around …

Koerner & Howard Crush The Javelina Jundred

Jamil CouryRace Report

It’s not every day you can simultaneously run a 100 mile race and watch as both the existing male and female course records vanish before your eyes.  Participants in this year’s Javelina Jundred witnessed a rare event this November as both Hal Koerner and Evan Honeyfield went under the previous best time of 14:20 set by Dave James in 2009 and Liza Howard dismantled Jamie Donaldson’s best of 17:11 set in 2010.  Javelina’s unique “washing-machine” style (reverse direction each lap) repeats the 15.4 mile Pemberton Trail, allowing not only for the elite runners to see where they stand against their competition, but also for the rest of the field to watch the race up front …

ultra marathon

2011 Javelina 12 Hour Report

Jamil CouryRace Report

The 15.4 mile Pemberton Trail within picturesque McDowell Mountain Regional Park served as the setting for this weekend’s Javelina 12 Hour night run hosted by Aravaipa Running.  This gathering of Arizona’s ultra and trail running community kicked off at 6pm, just as the sun set behind the McDowell Mountains to the west of the park.  Runners ranging in age from 15 to 76 set out to tackle anywhere from 1 to 4 loops on the trail. One of the unique features of this trail run is special permission to access the park’s trail system at night (trails normally close at sunset).  Although flashlights were needed for the first two hours, the  almost full moon eventually …

running trails

2011 Javelina 12 Hour Preview

Jamil CouryRace Preview

As high temperatures dip into the nineties here in the Phoenix area, we are gearing up for the first race in Aravaipa’s fall race season.  Our first event this year takes place in the rolling, mellow valley of Sonoran desert in between the McDowell Mountains and the Verde River.  This area was first inhabited by nomadic hunters and later thousands of Hohokam Indians who made their home near the confluence of the Verde and Salt Rivers.  Presently, it is home to McDowell Mountain Regional Park and the over 50 miles of scenic trails that meander through hills and across numerous desert washes that drain the McDowell Mountains. The most well known trail in the park …